1. Technical Field:
This invention deals with a new method of constructing a sail boat to attain a maximum sailing speed at the least materials used. The boat is constructed to have maximum safety against overturning and to have maximum wind contact for every particular sizes of boats. The wind has been the best friend of man in moving cargo across the ocean. The energy offered by the wind is unlimited, but man has not really mastered this Genie specially during storms. This invention is a new design of a sail boat to make it able to produce the largest forward force that is perpendicular to the wind compared to the ability of existing designs of the same size of boat. This invention also pertains to a new design of sail form and arrangement such that the integrated centroid of the windforce upon the sails is nearest down to the level of the boat to reduce overturning moment to the minimum, giving the chance to maximize wind contact.
2. Description of the Prior Arts
The existing design of sail boat, whether the mono hull type or the catamaran type, has to be assisted with transferring counter-weights such as the operators and/or passengers who are alternately moving from one side to the other side of the boat in order to prevent overturning of the boat due to excessive overturning moment produced by the wind upon the sail and the overturning moment produced bY the weight of the sail and the overturning moment by the weight of the mast when the boat is tilted to either side. The overturning moment effect upon the boat is directly proportional to the height of the center of gravity of the sail or the centroid of the wind force)above the boat.
Referring to U.S. Pat. No. 3,846,858 dated Nov. 12, 1974 by Syfritt--there is shown a variable hull boat (catamaran to trimaran or multihulled) in the form of two elongated collapsible/inflatable flexible container coupled together by a center framework that can be made into a center deep hull. This design has advantages on its convertability, including the detached uses of the flexible container, but taking it as a sail boat, it has the folloWing deficiencies:
1. It lacks side stability against overturning if the sail is made too large for its size when trying to maximize wind contact, or when trying to impede or deflect the maximum quantity of wind at a transverse cruise, there being no counter weight on either side.
2. The sail is a triangle tapering upward which moves the centroid of the wind force further upward from the boat, thereby increasing the overturning moment at least wind contact.
3. Extension pipes #26 is intended to hold the bow support #25 that is why it is too short forward, --which does not provide a structure to support additional separate sail erected far out beyond the front end of the boat.
Referring now to U.S. Pat. No. 4,341,177 dated July 27, 1982, by MIYAZAKI etal., --there is shown a small watercraft with a hull in the forward and rearward portions of its lower part, which has a water accommodation compartment on its lower front section and additional two water compartments on each side of the rear bottom section of the watercraft. Said water accommodation compartments are provided with side openings large enough to allow water to get in fast when watercraft gets to rest in order to bring down the center of gravity of the craft below the center of buoyancy to create floating stability. This special feature has great advantages-but it is only good for short time balancing process as the water accommodation compartments get empty very fast, and hence, the following deficiencies:
1. The counter balancing ability is only good for short time balancing process because the water accommodation compartments get empty when the load stays on one side for a long time beyond 3 seconds.
2. The counter balancing function of the said water compartments do not work when this watercraft is propelled by wind-sail because the left side compartment is emptied when the sail tilts the craft to the right side, and vice versa.
3. The objective of his invention does not include watercraft being tilted to one side for a long time.
Referring to U.S. Pat. No. 4,313,391 dated Feb. 2, 1982 by Hall, which shows a cross arm at the middle height of the mast for the purposed of stiffening the mast. But the purpose is defeated because of the following errors and or disadvantages:
1. It obstracts the maneuverability of the sail around the mast, and will even destroy the sail;
2. It stiffens the mast but one direction only;
3. It is a lot of complicated work at least benefit, because stiffening of the mast in all directions can be done by a horizontal circular spreader plate ring around the mast with 4 to 8 shrouds around the mast.
Referring to U.S. Pat. No. 210,573 dated Dec. 3, 1878 by W. H. Spooner, showing a square sail but built into a multilevel high sail which becomes an aggregate rectangle at an erect or vertical posture, resulting to a very high elevation of the centroid of the wind force that produce a very large overturning moment upon the boat.
Referring to U.S. Pat. No. 4,612,868 dated Sept. 23, 1986 by Reynolds--showing a vertically elongated triangular sail which is being expanded vertically by adding narrow horizontal segments to the bottom of the main body of the sail by means of a horizontal zipper as fabric connector--but it is in error because expansion of the sail creates additional lever-arm for a bigger overturning moment upon the boat. Zipper is a jointing method much older than Reynolds, but it is so far the best method in joining together pieces of fabrics specially in replacing an old sail and attaching a new sail to the existing frame of the sail.
Referring to U.S. Pat. No. 4,230,060 dated Oct. 28, 1980, by McCoy--showing a sail boat having a tall triangular sail which in effect moves up the centroid of the wind force thereby increasing the overturning moment upon the boat. The cross arm #20 likewise obstracts the free maneuver of the sail around the mast, it being too long, The function of cross arm 20 is already being done by side stay 112 & 114. The cross arm may even destroy the sail when the sail turns around the mast.
Referring to U.S. Pat. No. 1,504,057 dated Aug. 5, 1924 by KOELKEBECK--showing several designs of sails which, per FIG. 19, are several strips of fabric hanging from a heavy cross-arm forming a narrow horizontal sail --which the inventor intends to use in a small life boat. This method of constructing a sail has a good advantage because the wind force is close to the boat, that means minimizing the overturning moment upon the boat, but the following are the errors of this design:
1. It is a narrow rectangular sail which makes the wind spill over to the top and under the bottom of the sail thereby relaxing the development of effective wind pressure upon the sail. The principle is that the effective wind pressure approaches zero if the width of the sail approaches zero,--that is why the ideal shape of a sail should be a square.
2. The sail is an assembly of integrated individual narrow erect rectangular sail (not a solid sail) with spaces/gaps in between thereby actually forming a perforated sail allowing the escape of air thru it thereby missing out the development of effective wind pressure upon the sail.
3. This design is adoptable to small boats only, such as the life boat as per intention of the inventor, because if this design is constructed to a large size, the horizontal frame of the sail and the mast would become very massive/heavy and very expensive and most disadvantageously would contribute to the overturning of the boat.
Referring to U.S. Pat. No. 4,598,659 dated July 8, 1986, by Chinnery--showing a boat having a rigid flat side floater member #28. This feature is very disadvantageous to the sail boat because it contributes to the in-stability on the rough seas because it cannot slice through the surfs. It offers a wide broad face upon the in-coming waves so this boat will be oscillated vigorously by the surf.
Referring to U.S. Pat. No. 4,738,212 dated April 19, 1988, by Schveitzer--showing a slow motion water craft that is designed for use in underwater observations, which is a group of pantoon in triangular formation but there is no safeguard against oscillation by the surfs because it has broad bottom face that is pushed up and down vigorously by the surfs. In summary, all the aforesaid reference prior arts are slow sailers due to the following deficiencies, to wit:
1. The hulls are not built to be thin/narrow width relative to its height to enable the hull to slice--easily thru the surf, in order to minimize oscillation by the surfs;
2. The hulls are not built to have counter weights against overturning when the boat is tilted to either side by the sail.
3. The hulls are not built to have float boaster on each side to prevent the boat from sinking on the side where it is tilted when the wind acts too strong upon the sail.
4. The boats have not been built to hold four or more individually erected large square sails arranged longitudinally on the boat on the purpose to bring down close to the boat the centroid of the integral sum of the wind force from every sail while maximizing wind contact and wind pressure within the structural limits of the boat.
5. The sails are very tall, bringing up the location of the centroid of the wind force thereby creating a very large overturning moment upon the boat.
6. The masts are very heavy which contribute to the overturning moment upon the boat.
7. The stays and shrouds are very close to the mast, a situation that obstracts the free maneuver of the sail around the mast.